Chapter 54
It was a combination of unbelievable words.
I had no idea that Mayor Morneveil was dead...
And that I killed him too!
I didn’t even think I was awake because of how absurd the situation was.
I was just opening my mouth, but then I heard Dominic’s voice.
"Roasted chestnut...?"
He was looking at me as his eyes widened, it was like I could hear everything he was thinking just from his pupils dilating.
Was it ’murder’ to just try to persuade the mayor?
Ridiculous.
’It’s not me, Dr. Dominic!’
I looked at him with all my injustice and sadness, even if it was too late.
The option came to mind.
[You were arrested by the police who don’t know the bail!]
- Be arrested obediently.
- Protest fiercely and run away.
- Ask Dr. Dominic for help.
- Ask Dr. Dominic to call Edel.
What am I, stupid?
I chose the first one right away.
Even if I ran away from here right away, my murder charges didn’t disappear.
If you didn’t want to be chased all the time in Mornvail, it would be easier to just get arrested and clear the charge.
Asking Dominic for help was no different from running away.
I could use him as an alibi for the first few days, but after that, there would be no way to prove what I’d done.
I was obediently arrested.
***
I was locked in the detention center and sat on a mattress made of straw.
I put my forehead on my handcuffs.
"Hu..."
A deep sigh came out spontaneously.
I explained to myself what just happened.
I was being arrested at the police station.
Dominic, who had been with me, was also put forward as a witness, but it was of no use at all.
They were very polite and took Dominic a chance to speak and drove me as the culprit.
It was a way to fit in with the already fixed conclusion.
Even after hearing how Mayor Morneveil was killed, I was even more amazed.
The mayor of Morneveil died last night when he was stabbed in the back of his neck with a very thin and sharp awl in his bedroom.
He couldn’t scream once and instantly died, and there were almost no wounds on the body.
It was a murder method of an expert with extensive anatomical knowledge.
’How could I do that?’
I wanted to grab the police officer and shake him.
But at that point, I could guess who framed me.
Realizing why, I didn’t admit my guilt, but I gave up a further explanation.
That’s why I was locked up in the detention center.
’I’m going crazy.’
The mayor died, so the play was twisted.
Listening to the old man snoring and sleeping in the opposite prison, I sat on the old mattress and thought about how to get through this obstacle.
The rescue of sacrifices was the biggest problem.
Even if we could save people, it would be meaningless if there was no power to protect them.
If we were to get them outside of Morneveil, the apostles of the void would just find them again.
’There were three sacrifices used in the ceremony on the third day.’
While I was thinking about where to hide the three men, the rusty hinge squeaked.
I glanced at the detention center to see if another new criminal had entered.
A long shadow was cast.
It was a shadow of a length that humans could not have.
The owner of the shadow reached the prison where I was kept.
Dominic didn’t say anything, not because he couldn’t, but because of how pathetic I looked...
The option came to mind.
[Dr. Dominic came to the detention center!]
- Pretend to be pitiful.
- Get angry about why he let me be arrested.
- Ask him to take you out of the prison right now.
- Ask Dominic to call Edel.
Now the option was pushing to ’call Edel’...
I chose the first one after a little thought.
Then his face turned toward the sound and his eyes softened.
A crying voice came out.
"Dr. Dominic...?"
It was the normal reaction of a person who was ’suddenly imprisoned’, and then being relieved when seeing someone they trusted.
’Hu...maybe I could be an actor if true clearing didn’t work out...’
I continued to pretend to be pitiful as the option was given.
"Oh my god, Roasted Chestnut..."
Dominic put his hand on the black cast iron barge.
"I can’t believe they locked Roasted Chestnut in a place like this! I’ll remove it right away!"
I didn’t choose the third option, but it was better than anything else I could’ve said.
Dominic will be able to do what he said.
But I had no choice but to refuse.
"It’s okay."
"Why don’t you ask me, a colleague, for help?"
"Because leaving here doesn’t mean that the charges will disappear. Rather, only the charge of escaping is added!"
Aced it.
I approached the front of the bar and looked up at Dominic.
And I told him who I thought framed me.
"I think It’s Edel who blamed me for her murder."
It was Edel who was good at trimming the offerings by offering people for the ceremonies almost regularly.
It was clear it was her.
Dominic frowned.
"Ms. Edel...Roasted Chestnut..."
"Yes. It seems that she wanted to force me to join the denomination."
As soon as he heard me, Dominic immediately guessed the situation.
’She was going to push me into a dead end and make me join the denomination instead of getting me out of the murder.’
I knew that Edel was a little persistent and obsessed.
But I didn’t know it would go this far in just two days...
’It’s actually just been a day,’
I wondered if it was a mistake to show the resurrection in front of her eyes.
From her point of view, she doesn’t want to leave the existence that has received the miracle of God outside the denomination.
"Didn’t Miss Edel become a colleague of Roasted Chestnut like me?"
"That’s right..."
I laughed in vain at Dominic who couldn’t understand.
"Edel must be thinking that this is for my own good."
It was a trap of the Call of the void colleague system.
NPCs who become colleagues are very friendly to the player and maximize their abilities for the player.
However, the standard for the player was tailored to the NPC themself.
If the NPC thought it was right, they didn’t hesitate to play a bad ending for the player like now.
Anyway, it was definitely a ruined situation.
Although I was arrested many times on the reporter route, it was my first to be accused of murdering the Mayor I haven’t even met yet.
"Dr. Dominic. Even if I leave here, there’s another problem. Originally, I wanted to try to protect the escaped sacrifices safely with the power of the mayor, but it became impossible."
There was no way to escape from the influence of the denomination.
And it was hard to send them out of Morneveil.
The city is surrounded by a valley, so you’d have to take a train, and get caught at the train station.
Dominic asked calmly.
"If the problem of protecting the offerings is solved, can Roasted Chestnut leave here?"
I quickly rolled my head.
"If that’s the case, it’s okay to escape from prison."
The remaining evidence could have made me even with a fugitive.
In fact, I’ve already been a wanted criminal while on the reporter route and still collected evidence on the run.
"Yes, it’s okay to go out...."
I opened my mouth instead of talking.
Before I could finish my words, the cast iron bar that Dominic was holding in his hand began to sway.
It repeatedly sprouted and subsided as if it had sprouted thorns, and suddenly a thorn shot out toward me.
"...!"
The tip of the thorn brushed my cheek.
I had a tingling pain.
Surreuk.
The thorn that stretched out went back.
With blood on the end....
The cast iron bar finally changed its shape.
The bars opened wide and made a hole enough for me to walk out.
"I’m sorry, Roasted Chestnut. It’s a little different from transforming the size... I made a mistake because I was in a hurry..."
Dominic looked at me and apologized one after another.
"No, it’s not, this is hardly an injury. Thank you for taking me out."
I rubbed my cheek while pretending to wipe the blood with the back of my hand.
I needed to get rid of the goosebumps on my face.
After a few moments, it was time to get out of prison and quietly escape from the detention center.
Dominic suddenly pulled me back.
At the same time, a second visitor came.
The woman who entered the detention center with a smile was wearing a high-neck dress that covered her neck and a wide-brimmed hat with a silk veil hanging.
She was wearing silk gloves and holding an umbrella.
She walked gently through the veil of her hat and looked up at Dominic with red eyes.
"Dr. Dominic?"
Then she found the empty prison.
Ah Edel, who made a surprised sound, asked as if she was scared.
"Doctor! Where did the lamb go?"
It was touching to see her running her mouth because she was worried.
If only she wasn’t the one who locked me up in prison...
When Dominic didn’t answer, she chewed her lips anxiously.
"Where did you go.... It’s dangerous outside... Where to go alone.... Lamb.... I have to protect you..."
The voice muttering to herself was slightly creepy.
I was a little scared when I was looking at the figure behind Dominic.
Dominic left her alone until she bit her silk gloves.
Edel, who was tearing apart her gloves instead of her nails, came to her senses late and glanced behind Dominic.
"Oh, by the way.... Dr. Dominic, in the back...."
She got it.
"..."
Even though the prison was dark, it was strange that I didn’t get caught because I was hiding so sloppy.
Otherwise, I was preparing in advance to make excuses and lie to Edel.
I was about to move forward, but Dominic’s hand blocked me.
"Edel."
"Yes, yes?"
Edel looked up at Dominic in surprise.
Dominic slowly bent down.
Edel’s eyes gradually widened.
Dominic said in a calm voice while looking at her.
"There is no need to be anxious."
The blue eyes contained Edel. Edel opened her lips slightly.
"Excitement only blurs judgment. Miss Edel, do you remember when you were treated?"
"..Yes, sir."
The eyes that were almost flashing crazy until just now lost their light and became blurred.
"It’s a pity that there’s no chair to Iie down comfortably."
"Would you like to come a little closer to me?"
"...Yes."
Edel moved as if possessed. The distance between her and Dominic is now less than a span.
"Roasted Chestnut... well, Mr. Lamb as you know him. Miss Edel always does her best, maybe we can meet in another place, but it’s not here now and it won’t be in my clinic either."
Dominic continued talking slowly.
"How about focusing on preparing the ceremony of the denomination today? If you have a ceremony a little different from usual, it will also help relieve stress."
The voice gradually started digging in.
On the eardrum, to a deeper place.
"For example.... It would be nice to sacrifice the church members. Being a sacrifice for God is the ideal of the church. Miss Edel is the priest, so it’s necessary to fulfill the wishes of faithful people."
Dominic asked in a smooth voice like a dream.
"Do you understand what I’m saying, Miss Edel?"
Edel answered yes and smiled without decoration.
"I’lI have a grand ceremony, sir!"
She was infinitely loyal. Maybe she would have been positive no matter what Dominic said.
The content is sordid... Even if it was to die here right now.
I felt cold.
While using Dominic’s ability conveniently, I couldn’t help but feel an instinctive rejection every time.
I looked at the back of Edel who was leaving.
Dominic looked back at me and became surprised.
"Roasted Chestnut, are you okay? You’re sweating quite a lot. Here’s a handkerchief."
I rubbed my face with the handkerchief, which was almost the size of a towel...
I came back to my senses.
"It seems that you were surprised because of Miss Edel. But this won’t happen in the future because I had a good talk with Miss Edel."
"...thank you"
Dominic smiled at the thank you in a split voice.
He seemed to think that I was tired.
Hm but at the end of the day... I was glad that I was locked up in prison and came out.
"But Roasted Chestnut...."
Dominic asked while folding the handkerchief I returned.
"What’s the badge on the inside of your clothes?"